14 DAY TRIAL // With Pikmin 3 set to arrive on the new Wii U home console in 2013, the developers working on the game at the company are willing to talk about the way the series was first thought up and the evolution of the various included creatures.
Shigeru Miyamoto, the development legend that heads Nintendo’s game studios, is quoted by the Official Nintendo Magazine as saying, “In the case of Pikmin 1 our original idea was how it would be nice if we would be able to see a bunch of small creatures doing something. Something like, they are protecting their own village and at the same time they are trying to grow and expand that village.”
The Olimar only became a part of the game universe later during the process, with the developer adding, “in that original development mode the Pikmin were used as if weapons. To be utilised, to be shot by the player themselves.”
Miyamoto used Pikmin as an example about the way video game ideas were created inside Nintendo, with teams quickly iterating on a variety of ideas until one of them stood out from the crowd as a potential hit.
Pikmin 3 will allow players to control up to four leaders of the plant-like folk as they battle their enemies, using either the new touch screen of the GamePad or a Nunchuk.
There are also new types of creatures included, a Rock and a Pink Pikmin, but it also seems that the development team at Nintendo has eliminated some old favorites.
The game will take full advantage of the upgraded graphics quality of the Wii U and Miyamoto has previously promised that this third full game accomplishes his vision of the series.
Pikmin 3 does not currently have a launch date, but Nintendo has said that it will be out before the end of spring.